Expert Advice from Amy & Kyle Bergquist at Keller Williams Legacy Partners
I am fairly certain that the spring real estate market turned on last week. Do you know how I know this? I started waking up at 4am without the assistance of my alarm clock, thinking about all of the work that I needed to do, and then getting up to do it. Activating new listings, preparing for more listing appointments for houses that will come on the market, and then the subsequent showings with buyer
As those actively looking for a home can tell you, mortgage rates have risen sharply in the past two months. The chart to the right shows the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate loan since the beginning of the year. The chart is from the Bankrate.com site. From January through the beginning of May, mortgage interest rates bounced around the 3.5% level. But then, over the course of a little more than a month they
How strong is the bid we just submitted for that property you love? Are you going to get the house? Sellers are receiving multiple offers on a regular occasion this spring. Buyers are lined up, anxious to buy a home, and willing to submit offers on homes as soon as they hit the market. In many cases buyers know they need to write up their best offer immediately – there may not be an opportunity
Speculating that the mortgage interest tax deduction might go away is currently quite popular. News sites all across the internet have taken various angles on what it might mean to individual homeowners and the real estate markets in general. Most articles argue that eliminating this tax break will cause home values to decrease. The National Association of Realtors is frequently quoted as estimating that home prices would fall by 15% nationally and more in areas
We’ve been thinking a lot about mortgages lately. Something that jumps out at us is just how much of an opportunity the combination of declining mortgage rates and falling home prices has created for buyers. Interest rates for 30-year fixed mortgages were around 6% during the early and mid-2000s when we bought our house. Those same loans are now available for interest rates of 4% or less, and 15-year fixed mortgages are available for just